The Jungle eBook

politics, she troubled herself no further about it.
Jurgis was destined to find that Elzbieta’s armor
was absolutely impervious to Socialism. Her soul
had been baked hard in the fire of adversity, and
there was no altering it now; life to her was the
hunt for daily bread, and ideas existed for her only
as they bore upon that. All that interested her
in regard to this new frenzy which had seized hold
of her son-in-law was whether or not it had a tendency
to make him sober and industrious; and when she found
he intended to look for work and to contribute his
share to the family fund, she gave him full rein to
convince her of anything. A wonderfully wise little
woman was Elzbieta; she could think as quickly as
a hunted rabbit, and in half an hour she had chosen
her life-attitude to the Socialist movement.
She agreed in everything with Jurgis, except the need
of his paying his dues; and she would even go to a
meeting with him now and then, and sit and plan her
next day’s dinner amid the storm.

For a week after he became a convert Jurgis continued
to wander about all day, looking for work; until at
last he met with a strange fortune. He was passing
one of Chicago’s innumerable small hotels, and
after some hesitation he concluded to go in.
A man he took for the proprietor was standing in the
lobby, and he went up to him and tackled him for a
job.

“What can you do?” the man asked.

“Anything, sir,” said Jurgis, and added
quickly: “I’ve been out of work for
a long time, sir. I’m an honest man, and
I’m strong and willing—­”

The other was eying him narrowly. “Do you
drink?” he asked.

“No, sir,” said Jurgis.

“Well, I’ve been employing a man as a
porter, and he drinks. I’ve discharged
him seven times now, and I’ve about made up my
mind that’s enough. Would you be a porter?”

“All right. I’ll pay you thirty a
month and board, and you can begin now, if you feel
like it. You can put on the other fellow’s
rig.”

And so Jurgis fell to work, and toiled like a Trojan
till night. Then he went and told Elzbieta, and
also, late as it was, he paid a visit to Ostrinski
to let him know of his good fortune. Here he received
a great surprise, for when he was describing the location
of the hotel Ostrinski interrupted suddenly, “Not
Hinds’s!”

“Yes,” said Jurgis, “that’s
the name.”

To which the other replied, “Then you’ve
got the best boss in Chicago—­he’s
a state organizer of our party, and one of our best-known
speakers!”

So the next morning Jurgis went to his employer and
told him; and the man seized him by the hand and shook
it. “By Jove!” he cried, “that
lets me out. I didn’t sleep all last night
because I had discharged a good Socialist!”